Chibification
by Beth Winter
Summary: The story of a horrid curse, Evils of Sanrio and chibi Seishirou's black satin pajamas. Nominated in the Clamp Fanfiction Awards 2001
1. Part 1

Warnings: shonen-ai, OOC, attempted humor  
Disclaimer: Most things belong to Clamp, Hello Kitty belongs to Sanrio  
  
Apologies to: Terry Pratchett for the AshkEnte ritual, Neil Gaiman for Death misuse...  
  
  
X: CHIBIFICATION  
by Beth renfri@astercity.net  
  
  
  
"Trata-ta-ta-ta! Good Morning!!"  
  
Kamui blinked his large violet eyes and started to reluctantly unravel himself from the nest of bedsheets, cursing Keiichi for presenting him with a Hello Kitty alarm clock that spoke with such a cheerfully cute voice. He continued muttering obscenities while he sat on the edge of the bed. Kamui *hated* cute...  
  
He realized that his feet didn't reach the floor.  
  
He blinked and looked at his hands. They were chubbier than he remembered.  
  
Neglecting mundane stuff like walking, he got to the mirror in one flying jump. Then he screamed.  
  
"Kamui-kun? What is it?" Yuzuriha opened the door, also still in her pajamas and with adorably tousled hair.  
  
Kamui's jaw dropped. So did Yuzuriha's. She looked about to say something, but the boy dragged her to the mirror and pointed at it wordlessly.  
  
"We..." The inugami mistress seemed to have trouble processing the image before her. "We're CHIBI!!!!!"  
  
  
---*---  
  
  
An hour later an impromptu conference of the Dragons of Heaven was held in the Imonoyama residence. Kamui was annoyed to find out that while all Seals had been victims of super-deformation, the Detectives were still in their adult bodies.  
  
"So what do we do now?" Seiichiro asked. He pushed his glasses up his chibi nose. "I can't go to work like this!"  
  
"I almost got *stepped on* on my way here!" Karen added.  
  
"I think we have more pressing problems," Subaru stated. "Like the Dragons of Earth." He seemed annoyed that his usual calm and serious look came out as a rather cute pout when applied to a chibi face.  
  
"Don't we always?" Sorata muttered. He was too busy staring at the now much fuller figure of Arashi.  
  
The priestess spared him a cold glare before adding her opinion. "I think Sumeragi-san is right. Our powers are greatly reduced in this state, and if the Angels find out, they'll make short work of us.  
  
"We should find out what caused this," Arashi announced, folding her tiny arms. "Hinoto-hime is our best bet."  
  
"How about we go for ice-cream before?" Yuzuriha asked. "With the size difference, the regular portions will be huge now!"  
  
"Yeah!" Kamui agreed, his irritation lifting. He noticed that everyone in the room was staring at him. "What?"  
  
"You're... cheerful, Shirou-san," Nokoru said. "Very cheerful."  
  
"Chibis don't angst," Subaru noted. "They can be sad, but never for long."  
  
"How come you know so much?" Sorata peered at him with suspicion.  
  
The Sumeragi sweatdropped. "Uh... my sister used to read a lot of manga..." He blushed and quickly changed the topic. "We should go now - we need to get back to normal, quick!"  
  
"Why?" Akira asked. He picked up Kamui, ignoring the furious glare the chibi was giving him. "I think you all look CUTE!"  
  
The super-deformed Seals fell over.  
  
  
---*---  
  
  
some time later...  
  
  
---*---  
  
  
A row of adorable short figures sat dejectedly on top of the Diet building, most of them licking absently at ice-cream cones. The breeze tugged at Arashi's hair and Subaru's trenchcoat.  
  
"So the dreamgazer knows nothing," Seiichiro sighed.  
  
"Did she have to *laugh* so hard??" Karen demanded. "And Souhi and Hien, too!"  
  
"So what do we do now?" Sorata asked.  
  
"I could check my books..." the onmyouji mused.  
  
An ominous guitar riff sounded from some conveniently-placed shadows. The chibi-Seals scrambled into battle poses.  
  
"Just look at them..." Fuuma's voice echoed in the suddenly-still air. His eyes glinted in the darkness. "The great defenders of humanity..."  
  
Kamui couldn't take it any longer. He took off with a scream, heading straight for his nemesis; he paused in mid-air to throw his ice-cream at Subaru, who caught it deftly.  
  
"You weren't kidding when you said chibis don't angst..." Sorata muttered. "Or mope around, period."  
  
Kamui gathered his energy into a ball of light that shone dramatically in the shadows, then blinked.  
  
Fuuma was standing on a crate. He was decidedly chubbier than before, though in a thoroughly cute way.  
  
"You're chibi," Kamui stated. He realized he was still hanging in the air and landed next to his super-deformed twin star.  
  
"So are you."  
  
"Actually, that's the problem," Yuuto remarked from further in the shadows. He moved into the light, together with Nataku, Satsuki and Kusanagi. None of them were over two feet tall. "We thought you might know something about that."  
  
"How to stop it affecting my powers," Satsuki added. She looked with absolute (and cute) disgust at Inuki, who was sniffing her feet. She snapped her fingers, but produced only a few ineffectual sparks.  
  
"And how to remove it." Kusanagi shuddered. "I can't go to my unit looking like this!"  
  
"Oh cheer up, Kusa-chan!" Yuzuriha said. "Want some ice-cream?"  
  
"Sure..." he muttered, lighting up considerably.  
  
"Can I have some too, Kamui-chan?" Fuuma asked. "Uh... you did have a cone a moment before?"  
  
"Here." Subaru thrust the ice-cream at the two Kamuis, not caring which one intercepted it. "We need to learn what's going on, Hinoto knows nothing, I've had enough and I want to know where Seishirou-san is."  
  
"He's not picking up his phone," Yuuto said. He flashed a brilliant chibi-smile at Karen, who blushed cutely, while Seiichiro fumed. In chibi form this meant small lightning was flashing around his head, which made Sorata check if he hadn't unleashed his power accidentally.  
  
"I'll go get him." If looks could kill, there'd be a high fatality count on the Diet Building's roof. "Tokyo Tower. One hour. *All* of you." He stormed off, trenchcoat fluttering dramatically.  
  
"Whatever happened to chibi-ness reducing negative emotions?" Arashi mused.  
  
"It doesn't work on fury, as long as he looks cute being furious," Satsuki explained.  
  
"*You* read *manga*?" Yuzuriha asked, her eyes narrowed to slits.  
  
The chibi computer genius sweatdropped. "I... got a volume of "Wish" as a bonus with my mail-order of Clover..."  
  
Inuki expressed the feelings of everyone present. He said "Woof."  
  
  
---*---  
  
  
"Seishirou-san! I know you're in there!" Subaru stomped his little feet, then kicked at the door to the Sakurazukamori's apartment.  
  
Finally a muffled voice from inside muttered, "Go away."  
  
"Shan't."  
  
"Subaru-kun..."  
  
"Seishirou-san..."  
  
"It's no use making puppy-eyes at me through the door, you know."  
  
"But Seishirou-san..." Subaru made sure to put an extra bit of wobble in his voice.  
  
"Go. Away."  
  
The younger onmyouji shrugged. If you can't use the easy way...  
  
The door exploded in a very satisfying shower of splinters, knocking Seishirou onto the floor. He rubbed his head, checking whether it was still in one piece.  
  
"You brought Kamui-chan with you?" he asked, pushing himself up.  
  
"I can blow things up too," Subaru stated. Then he took in the sight before him.  
  
Seishirou Sakurazuka was, of course, chibi. He was also wearing black satin pajamas. With pink sakura on them. And he was clutching a blanket. A purple one.  
  
Subaru gaped.  
  
"Won't you give me a hand, Subaru-kun?" the Sakurazukamori asked.  
  
The younger onmyouji helped him up wordlessly.  
  
"Now, what was it you wanted so desperately?"  
  
"I need your help to find out what caused the- transformation." Subaru was trying to avoid looking at the way the midnight satin clung to his opponent's skin - even considering it was outlining an SD body, the effect was disconcerting to him. "There's a ritual that calls someone who'll probably know, but it needs eight magicians - you, me, Kishuu-san, Arisugawa-san, Nekoi-san, Kusanagi-san, Monou-san and Kamui. I told them to meet me in an hour at Tokyo Tower, so-"  
  
"No."  
  
"Seishirou-san..."  
  
"I. Am. Not. Going. To. Let. Anyone. See. Me. Like. This," Seishirou growled. "I have an image to uphold."  
  
"*I'm* seeing you right now," Subaru pointed out.  
  
"But you're special to me, Subaru-kun..." Seishirou decided that the Sumeragi looked doubly cute when chibi *and* blushing. "Besides," he shrugged, "you blew the door down."  
  
"Uh... yeah." Subaru sweatdropped. "But if you don't help me, we might stay this way forever!"  
  
"You do have a point," the Sakurazukamori mused. "One condition, Subaru-kun."  
  
"What?"  
  
"You let me take you out for ice-cream when all this is over."  
  
Subaru's eyes narrowed. "Ice-cream."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"As in frozen sweet treats."  
  
"Exactly."  
  
"And not emotional torture, breaking bones or sakura S&M?"  
  
  
"Why, I'm hurt, Subaru-kun..." 


	2. Part 2

Warnings: shonen-ai, OOC, attempted humor, pointless Micro$oft bashing  
Disclaimer: Most things belong to Clamp, Hello Kitty belongs to Sanrio  
  
Apologies to: Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman  
  
  
X: CHIBIFICATION  
by Beth renfri@astercity.net  
  
  
  
  
Tokyo Tower. Major landmark, Eiffel Tower look-alike and the set of countless Clamp series.  
  
It's traditional for lovers to visit the special viewing platform. But perhaps not right now.  
  
Not when it's chock-full of squabbling chibis.  
  
"All RIGHT!!" Sorata yelled. "Can we please *get on with it*?" The chibis paused, allowing the young monk from Koya to survey the scene.  
  
Seishirou was leaning all over Subaru under the pretense of reading the ritual's description over the younger man's shoulder. Kamui was fuming at this sight and jumping around to evade /Kamui/, who seemed intent on reciting erotic poetry to his twin star for some unfathomable reason. The violet-eyed boy also had to avoid colliding with Satsuki, pursued by Inuki -- it looked like the dog spirit did not consider chibi Yuzu-chan worthy of giving orders to him. This of course made Yuzuriha break into tears, despite Kusanagi's attempts to cheer her up. Yuuto ignored all this and concentrated on flirting shamelessly with Karen, which made the flame-mistress blush and Seiichiro fume. Sorata was sure the windmaster should not be purple like that...  
  
"I agree," Arashi said calmly. She was sitting on a railing, next to Nataku, staying out of the quarrels. "Sumeragi-san, what do we have to do during the ritual?"  
  
"Just concentrate your power and cleanse your minds," Subaru hastened to explain. "I and Seishirou-san will direct your energy into the summoning - Seishirou-san?"  
  
"Nani?" The Sakurazukamori seemed rather preoccupied with trailing his fingers through the young onmyouji's hair. "Oh - the summoning. Of course."  
  
Sorata realized that the strange quiet sound he was hearing was Kamui grating his teeth.  
  
Arashi took one look at the diagram the Sumeragi had drawn up on the floor, then quickly and efficiently shooed everyone into the right positions at the points of the octogram. The young monk looked at her with admiration - not even super-deformation could relieve his beloved of her authority...  
  
Not to mention her figure was *much* fuller in this form.  
  
"Alright." Seishirou got his mind off Subaru and to the work before them. "Have we got the components?"  
  
"Here," Yuuto said. "One fresh egg and two identical pieces of wood." He opened the plastic bag to reveal-  
  
-two wooden swords. Shinkens.  
  
The assembled Dragons fell over, except for Fuuma, who reached for the weapons with enthusiasm.  
  
Subaru snatched them quickly and gave Yuuto an exasperated look. "Where'd you get those?"  
  
Yuuto sweatdropped. "It said 'Clamp Merchandise' on the stall..."  
  
"Clamp?" Kusanagi asked. "I *don't* want to know."  
  
"Clamps can be fun," Fuuma suggested.  
  
"So can clams, and *you're* going to be one soon if you don't do as you're told," Seishirou snapped. "If everyone's ready..."  
  
The assembled chibi Seals and Angels nodded quickly.  
  
The two onmyouji began to chant. Appropriately impressive magical energy swirled around them, though for some reason it was a greenish-purple color.  
  
The air tasted like tin.  
  
Seishirou raised the egg and broke it, releasing a cloud of greenish-purple smoke. He muttered something about the indignity of doing magic with ovarian products, to which Subaru whispered that the other version of the spell required fresh mouse blood, and if Seishirou wanted to go hunt one, he'd be just as happy.  
  
Finally the octogram filled with a brilliant flash of light. When the assembled chibis regained their sight, they saw a figure standing inside the mystic markings.  
  
The effect was rather spoilt by the fact the figure was wearing a fluffy black skirt, a black blouse with short puffy sleeves and holding a black wand shaped like a raven. The girl also had a silver ankh around her neck.  
  
"Alright," she snapped impatiently. "What do you- kawaii!!" The last remark was addressed at Kamui.  
  
The super-deformed leader of the Seals stared her down as best as he could, which didn't prevent her from picking him up and hugging him. Then she noticed Fuuma's look.  
  
"Oh, sorry!" she laughed, putting down the struggling chibi, then turned to Subaru. "Now, what was it you wanted?"  
  
The onmyouji bowed. "Lady Death, we seek the source of the curse that has befalled us."  
  
The girl mused for a minute. "Do I have to tell you?"  
  
"Such are the rules of the summoning, my lady."  
  
"But-"  
  
Kamui snapped his fingers and gathered some ominous-looking energy in one hand. "Tell us or fry," he suggested.  
  
Seishirou promptly whacked him on the head. "She's *Death*."  
  
The violet-eyed chibi eyed him with irritation. "So?"  
  
Death laughed. "You two look adorable!" she crooned.  
  
The Sakurazukamori scowled. "That's the problem. Can you reveal to us how to relieve this state - my lady?"  
  
The black-haired Power sobered up. "It's clouded, as is everything that concerns your two groups. All I see is the usual -- the end of the world, Tokyo in ruins, only two buildings left standing-"  
  
"The Tokyo Tower and the City Hall..." all Dragons chorused.  
  
"Yes." Death grinned. "You've heard that before?"  
  
"Try a hundred times before," Fuuma sighed.  
  
"There is not much above that," she continued. "But there's also-" She broke off abruptly when ribbons of pink energy started to swirl around her. "What's this?"  
  
Seishirou sweatdropped. "No idea. This wasn't in the spell description..."  
  
The energy was now half-obscuring the girl. "Do something about it!" she demanded.  
  
Subaru took out an ofuda, but before he could start chanting, the pink cocoon had closed. Then it flashed a brilliant white light.  
  
When the flash faded, Death was once again standing in the octogram, unchanged but for one thing.  
  
She was chibi.  
  
"Waaah!" she wailed. "What's going ON??"  
  
"There, there..." Seiichiro patted her shoulder. "It's not that bad."  
  
"It's catching," Kusanagi noted. "We need to stop it, fast."  
  
"Did you sense *anything* at all?" Arashi asked the SD Death.  
  
"Only some letters and numbers... JP3343200006, I think."  
  
"Sounds like a Tokyo Stock Exchange listing number," Seiichiro noted.  
  
"I can check it out with Beast," Satsuki offered.  
  
"I can check it out with my cellphone," Subaru pointed out.  
  
"How?" Nataku asked.  
  
"It's got a WAP browser."  
  
"Beast can also break into the company's computers, download their files, break their codes and shut down their accounts," Satsuki noted.  
  
"Can it order ice-cream with delivery?" Yuzuriha asked.  
  
"Sure."  
  
"I'm for it!"  
  
"Me too," Death added. "I need something sweet to cheer up."  
  
The rest of the Dragons realized they had no chance against three perky chibi girls, and reluctantly tagged along. Except for Kamui, who had to be dragged, kicking and screaming, and finally carried bodily by Sorata. Death noted that for some reason the boy didn't like going into 'that den of evil', but she couldn't hear much because she had to keep up with Satsuki and Yuzuriha, who decided that jumping over rooftops would be quickest.  
  
  
---*---  
  
  
  
Arashi looked with absolute disgust at the residue of soda cans and Pocky wrappers on the floor.  
  
"Don't you ever clean up here?" she asked.  
  
"Not often..." Satsuki shrugged, then sat in her customary chair. Beast's wires snuck out and wrapped around her limbs as she reached for her helmet.  
  
It fell over her ears and hid her chibi head up to the shoulders.  
  
"Oh shit..." she muttered. "I forgot I'm SD."  
  
After a bit of consideration and consternation on the part of the Dragons, Nataku finally used its scarf to pad up the helmet so that it would fit and Satsuki was able to get online.  
  
"You can look that number up using My-E-Stock," Yuzuriha supplied, jumping up and down excitedly.  
  
"No I can't. That site crashes my Netscape," Satsuki scowled.  
  
"Why not use Internet Explorer, then?" Karen suggested.  
  
A small black cloud appeared over Satsuki's head. "Firegirl, I might be a Dragon of Earth, but I DO have standards!! I will *not* pollute BEAST with a- a- a Microsoft product!!!" The cloud sprouted lightning that crashed ominously into the walls.  
  
"Maa, maa," Yuuto laughed nervously, spreading his chubby hands. "Calm down. You'll want www.tse.or.jp, that works with Netscape."  
  
"I thought the Japanese government used IE?" Seiichiro asked.  
  
"I let Satsuki revamp my laptop."  
  
"The number's JP3343200006," Subaru recited.  
  
"Wow, you memorized it?" Kamui's eyes shone with unsupressed hero-worship. Fuuma seethed (with obligatory chibi-rage lightning effects).  
  
Seishirou snatched the palmtop computer out of the other onmyouji's unsuspecting hands. "I see my Christmas gift came in handy," he smiled.  
  
Death edged closer to Nataku, the only person who seemed to keep its calm. "Are they always this crazy?" she whispered.  
  
Nataku regarded her with puzzlement. "What does 'crazy' mean?"  
  
The Bane of Life, the Last of the Endless, the Guardian of the Sunless Lands and the Only Person who Can Tell Morpheus Off and Live fell over.  
  
Meanwhile, Satsuki had reached the site in question and put in the number, referencing it to the company name. She gasped.  
  
"What is it???" everyone shouted. The combined volume of shrill voices made the walls tremble.  
  
The youngest Dragon of Earth shook her head. "It... can't be. It's not possible!!!"  
  
"What is it?" Kusanagi demanded.  
  
"Is it the Sakurazuka company?" Kamui asked eagerly.  
  
"No it isn't!" Seishirou scowled.  
  
"Is it the Sumeragi company?" Fuuma crowed.  
  
"No," Subaru said curtly.  
  
"Is it Kadokawa?" Yuuto asked.  
  
  
  
"No..." Satsuki whispered. "It's Sanrio."  
  
The word echoed in the basement of the City Hall.  
  
"Sanrio?" Sorata managed finally. "As in Hello Kitty??"  
  
"No other." 


	3. Part 3

Warnings: shonen-ai, OOC, attempted humor, Kenshin trademarked line stealing, pointless Dragonball references  
Disclaimer: Most things belong to Clamp, Hello Kitty belongs to Sanrio  
  
Apologies to: Neil Gaiman, Nobuhiro Watsuki, Akira Toriyama and Helen Fielding  
  
  
  
X: CHIBIFICATION  
by Beth renfri@astercity.net  
  
  
An hour later, the assembled chibi Dragons were lounging around the City Hall's basement, debating over the next course of action. Yuzuriha and Satsuki were stuffing themselves with the just-delivered ice-cream, with the computer girl deliberating out loud the compared evilness level of the Dark Kamui and Bill Gates. The former gave up on chasing Kamui around and was watching Death, who'd enlisted Kakyou's help in trying to contact her brother Dream.  
  
Meanwhile, Kamui had taken refuge beside Subaru, but was now regretting the decision. They sat in an armchair that could host one full-sized person or two chibis, but with the Sakurazukamori on Kamui's other side it was feeling kind of cramped. Kamui leaned forward and stared morosely at the floor, pointedly ignoring the things Seishirou was whispering in his prey's ear. And trying not to blush too much.  
  
"Alright then," Yuuto said. "Does anybody know what Sanrio's been doing lately?"  
  
"Wait a minute," Seiichiro said. "I remember I got an assignment to write about their newest line of merchandise -- new alarm clocks."  
  
"They suck," Kamui said. "I got one from Keiichi."  
  
"Who's Keiichi?" Fuuma asked. "Someone I should know about?" His eyes glinted in a particularly evil way.  
  
"You're the one to talk," Kusanagi noted. "You got one from the Sakurazukamori yourself."  
  
Subaru turned to Seishirou and glared.  
  
"Uh, Subaru-kun..." The assassin scooted back in the seat. "I can explain-"  
  
He didn't get a chance to. Before he could say another word, the Sumeragi hit him over the head with a large mallet.  
  
Seishirou fell down from the chair with a large bump on the head and swirls in his eyes. "Oroooo..." he moaned.  
  
The others chose not to comment.  
  
"Wait a minute," Sorata said. "Both leaders of the Dragons have Hello Kitty alarm clocks? When did you get them?"  
  
"Yesterday," Kamui said.  
  
"Same here," Fuuma added. He threw a long look at the Sakurazukamori. "Just before we..."  
  
Kamui grabbed at Subaru's mallet and hit his twin star right in the middle of the broom haircut.  
  
"Can you bring them here?" Arashi asked, pointedly ignoring Fuuma's outraged squeak. "I might be able to sense something."  
  
  
---*---  
  
  
Surprisingly, Kamui's trip (via rooftops) to Clamp Campus took exactly the same amount of time as Fuuma's dig through the mess that passed as his bedroom. It might have been because the latter's eyes kept swirling. Anyway, once the clocks were put side-by-side in the middle of the floor, they looked totally identical. Both were figures of Hello Kitty, about five inches tall, with the face of the clock built into the torso. Everybody moved away from them, just in case.  
  
"Can you feel anything, Miss?" Sorata asked eagerly. "Or maybe a kiss can help you concentrate...?"  
  
Arashi eyed the Sumeragi's mallet with longing, but the onmyouji shook his head. *Chi no Ryu only,* he mouthed.  
  
She sighed and looked at the cute alarm clocks through the circle of her hands.  
  
"They're practically emanating cuteness!" she gasped. "I've never seen influence so strong... it's like they've concentrated the cute factor of the entire Hello Kitty merchandise in two objects!"  
  
"So there we have it," Seiichiro intoned solemnly. "The two clocks connected with the bond between Kamui and /Kamui/ as a conduit. But the emanation started a chain reaction... turning all those whose Destiny was Foreordained into chibis."  
  
"Why are you doing the recap?" Yuuto asked.  
  
"I'm the most scholarly type."  
  
"What do we do now??" Karen wailed. "I don't want to spend the rest of my life tending to clients with a Lolita complex!!"  
  
"What's a Lolita complex?" Nataku asked.  
  
"It's what Kusanagi and Yuuto have," Seiichiro explained eagerly.  
  
"I wonder what they'd say about Seishirou-san," Subaru muttered.  
  
"That's shotacon," Arashi said absent-mindedly.  
  
Everybody sweatdropped.  
  
Death clapped her little hands. She drew a deep breath.  
  
"EEEEENOOOOUGH!!!!!"  
  
The assembled Seals and Dragons froze.  
  
"Now, that's better, isn't it?" Death grinned.  
  
"I've got an idea," Seishirou offered.  
  
"Go ahead."  
  
The Sakurazukamori grinned. He raised a hand and summoned his shikigami, then sent it flying at the clocks. It tore through the air, shrieking, its sharp talons glinting in the dim light. It struck with a loud bang, bathing the room in white light.  
  
The floor tiles shattered, but the Hello Kitty figures remained untouched. Seishirou fell over.  
  
The Dragons stood motionless for a while, then Kamui shrugged.  
  
"I can try something I've seen in a movie," he said.  
  
"Can't hurt," Kusanagi muttered.  
  
"Just don't blow the place up," Yuuto admonished.  
  
"I'll try," Kamui promised. Under his breath he muttered something that sounded like "If it worked for Goku..."  
  
He planted his feet firmly on the ground, then put his hands at his right hip, palms at right angles to each other. "Kaa... meh...."  
  
White energy started to gather between his hands in a ball.  
  
Yuzuriha leaned over to Satsuki and whispered, "Is he doing what I think he's doing?"  
  
"I'm afraid so," Satsuki whispered back.  
  
"Ha... meh..." Kamui called. The ball crackled with energy.  
  
With lightning-quick speed the Seal put his hands forward with the last syllable of the spell. "HA!"  
  
The energy shot towards the clocks and-  
  
-impacted.  
  
When the smoke cleared, the center of the room was a large crater, filled halfway with battered Hello Kitty dolls. There was no sign left of the clocks.  
  
And everybody was back to normal size.  
  
"Yatta!!!" Sorata yelled. "I've got my handsome looks back!"  
  
Death sighed with relief. "It was fun guys, but gotta run!" She disappeared.  
  
"We should find out who made those clocks and got them to Kamui and Fuuma," Arashi said.  
  
"Why?" Fuuma asked. "It's over, and that's what's important." He turned to Seishirou. "How about..."  
  
But the Sakurazukamori was busy stalking his prey. "You promised, Subaru-kun," he purred.  
  
"Eep." The Sumeragi was evidently having second thoughts. "You said just ice-cream," he reminded weakly.  
  
"I didn't say where..."  
  
Appropriately romantic music floated in the air, and sparkly pink lights surrounded the two as Seishirou took Subaru's hand.  
  
"Let me take you away from all this," he said solemnly.  
  
They disappeared in a swirl of sakura petals.  
  
Fuuma drooped. "*I* wanted to go with him for ice-cream..."  
  
"He's a pervert two-faced bastard anyway," Kamui noted. "You don't need him."  
  
"You're right," Fuuma grinned. "Not when I can have a delightful young thing like yourself for company..."  
  
Kamui started to say something about his heart belonging to Subaru, then thought better of it. "You're paying," he said instead.  
  
  
---*---  
  
  
Some minutes later Sorata looked around the room. Satsuki was explaining dynamic html to Yuzuriha, pulling up examples on Beast's screen. Nataku was deep in conversation with Arashi and Karen, apparently about "women stuff". The name "Bridget Jones" drifted to him, and he could see books being exchanged. Kusanagi, Yuuto and Seiichiro had already left, trying to salvage as much as possible from the working day.  
  
He did the only thing left to salvage his honor as a Seal and the Star of Koya. He stretched out and fell asleep next to Kakyou.  
  
  
---*---  
  
  
A month from that fateful day, a figure stood in front of the dreamgazer below the Diet Building. It reached for Hinoto's hand and together they looked at the present.  
  
In a room at Clamp Campus, Kamui attempted to study. This was rather hindered by Sorata being ecstatic about his upcoming cinema date with Arashi (to see something called "Bridget Jones's Diary") and Fuuma playing with his hair.  
  
In an apartment in the suburbs, Seiichiro played with his daughter while his wife made dinner.  
  
In an ice-cream parlor, Kusanagi and Yuuto gazed dreamily at their girlfriends pigging out on sundaes. Yuzuriha was wearing a Linux t-shirt.  
  
In a darkened cinema Nataku looked with rapt attention at the adventures of Snow White and trembled when the Evil Queen came on screen. Karen smiled indulgently at the bioroid; she'd always wanted a child of her own.  
  
Finally, the view changed to an apartment in Shinjuku. Two figures lounged on the balcony.  
  
"Seishirou-san, you still haven't told me what you said to the waitress in New Orleans. She gave me the weirdest look."  
  
"Subaru-kun?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Shut up."  
  
"Make me."  
  
"Like this?"  
  
"Mmmmm..."  
  
Hinoto dropped the vision, blushing slightly. She turned her head to her visitor.  
  
//You did it. The future has been changed. I no longer dream my dream.//  
  
He smiled. "I knew that being chibi for a while would let them get all this off their chests."  
  
//I suppose you will sell Sanrio now?//  
  
"I don't think so. Akira's having way too much fun designing new merchandise." Nokoru laughed. "His latest idea are Chi no Ryu UFO Catcher dolls. Still.."  
  
He snapped open a fan.  
  
It read, "THE END"  
  
  
  
  
Beth: *phew* now that's over with...  
Hello Kitty clock: Tratatatata!!! Good morning!!!!  
Beth: NOOOoooOOOOooo!!!!! *turns chibi* Here we go again... 


End file.
